Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   The statement concerning the interpretation of His words, the Exalted: إِلا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا وَبَيَّنُوا فَأُولَئِكَ أَتُوبُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَنَا التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ (160)

   (Except those who repent, reform themselves, and make it clear; these, their repentance I accept, and I am the Acceptor of repentance, the Merciful.)

   Abū Jaʿfar said: He, exalted is His mention, means by this: that Allah and the cursers curse those who conceal from the people what they knew concerning the prophethood of Muḥammad ﷺ, and his description and characteristics in the Book that Allah has sent down and made clear to the people — except the one among them who turns back from his concealment thereof; and who returns to repentance through faith (īmān) in Muḥammad ﷺ, and the acknowledgment of him and of his prophethood, and the affirmation of him in what he brought from Allah, and the making clear of what Allah has sent down in His books which He sent down to His prophets, concerning the command to follow him; and who improves the state of his own soul by drawing near to Allah with good deeds with which He is pleased with him; and who makes clear what he knew of the revelation (waḥy) of Allah, which He sent down to His prophets and enjoined upon them in His books, and so does not conceal it, and reveals it and does not hide it = "فَأُولَئِكَ" (these, then), that is to say: those who have done this which I have described of them, they are the ones whose repentance I accept, and I make them to be those who return to My obedience and turn toward My good pleasure.

   Then He said, exalted is His mention: "وَأَنَا التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ" (and I am the Acceptor of repentance, the Merciful). He says: and I am the One who returns the hearts of My servants who have turned away from Me back to Me, and who brings them, after they have turned away from My obedience, back to seeking My love; and the Merciful (al-Raḥīm) toward those who turn to Me, after they have turned to Me, I cover them on My part with forgiveness, and I forgo the burden of what they have done wrong in what is between Me and them, through the favor of My mercy toward them.

   * * *

   If someone were to say: how can repentance be accepted from the one who has repented? And what is the meaning of His words: "إِلا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا فَأُولَئِكَ أَتُوبُ عَلَيْهِمْ" (except those who repent; these, their repentance I accept)? And can there be one who repents without his repentance being accepted, or one whose repentance is accepted without his repenting?

   Then it is said: that belongs to that in which one of the two cannot exist without the other accompanying it. It is therefore the same whether one says: except those whose repentance was accepted, so that they repented — or one says: except those who repented, for indeed I accept their repentance. And we have already clarified the meaning of this regarding that which has come in this form of wording, in the like case among what has passed of this book of ours, and for that reason we were averse to repeating it in this place.

   * * *

   And in accordance with what we have said about this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.

   * Mention of who said that:

   2390 - Bishr ibn Muʿādh related to us, he said: Yazīd related to us, he said: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His words: "إِلا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا وَبَيَّنُوا" (except those who repent, reform themselves, and make it clear), he says: they reformed themselves in what is between them and Allah, and they made clear what had come to them from Allah, and they did not conceal it and they did not deny it: these, their repentance I accept, and I am the Acceptor of repentance, the Merciful.

   2391 - Yūnus related to me, he said: Ibn Wahb informed us, he said: Ibn Zayd said concerning His words: "إِلا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا وَبَيَّنُوا" (except those who repent, reform themselves, and make it clear), he said: they made clear what is in the Book of Allah for the believers, and that about which they asked them concerning the matter of the Prophet ﷺ. And all of this concerns the Jews.

   * * *

   Abū Jaʿfar said: and some of them have claimed that the meaning of His words: "وَبَيَّنُوا" (and make it clear), is only: and they made the repentance clear through sincerity of action. But the evidence of the clear meaning of the Book and the revelation is contrary to that. For the people were, before this verse, only reproached for their concealment of what Allah, exalted is His mention, has sent down and made clear in His Book, concerning the matter of Muḥammad ﷺ and his religion; then He, exalted is His mention, excepted from them those who make clear the matter of Muḥammad ﷺ and his religion and who repent from the denial and concealment in which they were, and thus He removed them from the number of those whom Allah curses and whom the cursers curse = and the reproach was not for their failure to make clear the repentance through sincerity of action.

   And those whom Allah has excepted from those who conceal what Allah has sent down of clear proofs and guidance, after He had made it clear for the people in the Book, they are ʿAbd Allāh ibn Salām and his companions among the People of the Book, who accepted Islam and whose Islam was good, and who followed the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

   Show original Arabic

   القول في تأويل قوله تعالى : إِلا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا وَبَيَّنُوا فَأُولَئِكَ أَتُوبُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَنَا التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ (160) قال أبو جعفر: يعني تعالى ذكره بذلك: أن الله واللاعنين يَلعنون الكاتمين الناس ما علموا من أمر نبوة محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم وصفته ونعته في الكتاب الذي أنـزله الله وبَيَّنه للناس, إلا من أناب من كتمانه ذلك منهم؛ ورَاجع التوبة بالإيمان بمحمد صلى الله عليه وسلم, والإقرار به وبنبوّته, وتصديقه فيما جاء به من عند الله، وبيان ما أنـزل الله في كتبه التي أنـزل إلى أنبيائه، من الأمر باتباعه؛ وأصلح حالَ نفسه بالتقرب إلى الله من صَالح الأعمال بما يُرضيه عنه؛ وبيَّن الذي عَلم من وَحي الله الذي أنـزله إلى أنبيائه وعهد إليهم في كتبه فلم يكتمه، وأظهرَه فلم يُخفِه =" فأولئك ", يعني: هؤلاء الذين فَعلوا هذا الذي وصفت منهم, هم الذين أتوب عليهم, فأجعلهم من أهل الإياب إلى طاعتي، والإنابة إلى مَرضَاتي. ثم قال تعالى ذكره: " وَأنا التواب الرحيم "، يقول: وأنا الذي أرجع بقلوب عبيدي المنصرفة عنّى إليَّ, والرادُّها بعد إدبارها عَن طاعتي إلى طلب محبتي, والرحيم بالمقبلين بعد إقبالهم إليَّ، أتغمدهم مني بعفو، وأصفح عن عظيم ما كانوا اجترموا فيما بيني وبينهم، بفضل رحمتي لهم. * * * فإن قال قائل: وكيف يُتاب على من تاب؟ وما وَجه قوله: " إلا الذينَ تابوا فأولئك أتوب عليهم "؟ وهل يكون تائبٌ إلا وهو مَتُوب عليه، أو متوب عليه إلا وهو تائب؟ قيل: ذلك مما لا يكون أحدُهما إلا والآخر معه, فسواء قيل: إلا الذين تِيبَ عليهم فتابوا - أو قيل: إلا الذين تابوا فإني أتوب عليهم. وقد بيَّنا وَجه ذلك &; 3-260 &; فيما جاء من الكلام هذا المجيء، في نظيره فيما مضى من كتابنا هذا, فكرهنا إعادته في هذا الموضع. (82) * * * وبنحو ما قلنا في ذلك قال أهل التأويل. * ذكر من قال ذلك: 2390- حدثنا بشر بن معاذ قال، حدثنا يزيد قال، حدثنا سعيد, عن قتادة في قوله: " إلا الذين تابوا وأصلحوا وبَيَّنوا "، يقول: أصلحوا فيما بينهم وبين الله, وبيَّنوا الذي جاءهم من الله, فلم يكتموه ولم يجحدوا به: أولئك أتوب عليهم وأنا التواب الرحيم. 2391- حدثني يونس قال، أخبرنا ابن وهب قال، قال ابن زيد في قوله: " إلا الذين تَابوا وأصلحوا وبَينوا " قال، بيّنوا ما في كتاب الله للمؤمنين, وما سألوهم عنه من أمر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم. وهذا كله في يهود. * * * قال أبو جعفر: وقد زعم بعضهم أن معنى قوله: " وبيَّنوا "، إنما هو: وبينوا التوبة بإخلاص العمل. ودليل ظاهر الكتاب والتنـزيل بخلافه. لأن القوم إنما عوتبوا قبل هذه الآية، (83) على كتمانهم ما أنـزلَ الله تعالى ذكره وبينه في كتابه، في أمر محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم ودينه، ثم استثنى منهم تعالى ذكره الذين يبينون أمرَ محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم ودينه، فيتوبون مما كانوا عليه من الجحود والكتمان, فأخرجهم من عِداد مَنْ يَلعنه الله ويَلعنه اللاعنون (84) = ولم يكن العتاب على تركهم تبيين التوبة بإخلاص العمل. والذين استثنى اللهُ من الذين يكتمون ما أنـزل الله من البينات والهدى من بعد &; 3-261 &; ما بيَّنه للناس في الكتاب، (85) عبدُ الله بن سلام وذَووه من أهل الكتاب، (86) الذين أسلموا فحسن إسلامهم، واتبعوا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم. ----------- الهوامش : (82) انظر ما سلف 2 : 549 . (83) في المطبوعة : "في مثل هذه الآية" ، وهو خطأ ، والصواب ما أثبت . (84) في المطبوعة : "فأخرجهم من عذاب من يلعنه الله" ، وهو تصحيف ، صوابه ما أثبت . (85) في المطبوعة : "من بعد ما بيناه للناس" ، وهو خطأ وسهو . (86) قوله : "وذووه" ، أي أصحابه وأهل ملته ، بإضافة"ذو" إلى الضمير ، وللنحاة فيه قول كثير ، وزعموا أن ذلك يكون في ضرورة الشعر ، وليس كذلك ، بل هو آت في النثر قديمًا ، بمثل ما استعمله الطبري .